_ wo. .	EPA-842-N-21-001
|—1-%* United States
pMIl Environmental Protection	March 2021
^ i ImI m \ Agency
THE FLOW OF... TRASH	FREE WATERS
ISSUE 14
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
Trash Free Waters and
COVID-19	1
Trash Free St. Louis Trash
Capture Project Kickoff.	2
Great Lakes Restoration
Initiative (GLRI) Trash Free
Waters Grants	2
Maryland Coastal Bays' Protect
Our Sand and Seas	3
Save Our Seas 2.0 Act Signed
into Law	3
EPA Gulf of Mexico Division Trash
Free Waters Efforts	4
Nurdle Patrol Update	4
Ditch the Disposables Campaign
in Alabama's Three Mile Creek
Watershed	5
Prevent Balloon Litter Website ....5
Trash Free Waters Project
Announcements	6
Recommended Reading	6
TFW Webinar Series	7
HOW'S IT FLOWING?
Trash Free Waters and COVID-19
COVID-19 has brought a number
of challenges to communities
across the nation, including the
improper disposal of masks and
gloves. Last year, EPA released a
video highlighting proper
disposal of Personal Protective
Equipment (PPE) and the
importance of recycling during
these challenging times.
EPA's Trash Free Waters website
has been updated with informa-
tion on proper disposal tips and
waste management reminders.
The update includes a link to a
Spanish-language video created
by the San Juan Bay National
Estuary Program. For more
information, visit https://www.
epa.gov/trash-free-waters/
what-vou-can-do.
Place-based Trash Free Waters
projects in communities across
the nation continue to adapt. The
Long Island Sound Study's
#DontTrashLISound campaign
emphasized the threat of
improperly disposed of PPE on
Long Island Sound wildlife.
Instead of advertising large
community cleanups, LISS
encouraged residents to partici-
pate in solo or social distanc-
ing-friendly cleanups and watch
local beach cleanups via Insta-
gram Live. The campaign
wrapped up the first week of
September.
In Atlanta's Proctor Creek
Watershed, project partners
have developed virtual trash trap
tours to replace in-person field
trips. Other local stakeholders
involved in the initiative have
conducted virtual camps on
social media to reach local
students and residents.
Maryland Coastal Bays National
Reusable canvas bags offered at
a local restaurant as part of the
MCBP source reduction campaign.
Estuary Program (MCBP) provided
local restaurants with canvas
bags after noticing an increase in
single-use carryout food packag-
ing littered on local streets. This
effort, conducted in collaboration
with the Ocean City Green Team,
helps discourage the use of
plastic bags for take-out food.
Kudos to all the Trash Free Waters
project leaders and volunteers
who have found safe ways to
keep protecting our waterways!
This newsletter is intended to
provide the latest information
to all of our Trash Free Waters
(TFW) partners and friends.
The Flow...of Trash Free
Waters is our opportunity to
highlight recent successes, as
well as shine a spotlight on
news and other related items.
It is produced by the U.S.
Environmental Protection
Agency, with support from lEc.
Mention of commercial
products, publications, or Web
sites in this newsletter does
not constitute endorsement or
recommendation for use by
EPA, and shall not be used for
advertising or product
endorsement purposes.
Infographic on proper disposal of masks and gloves. See it at https://vwvw.epa.aov/trash-free-waters.
Keep disposable face masks and gloves out of our waterways!
N A disposable mask or glove
p, dropped outside can wash
into streams, bays, and the
ocean when it rains.
Most masks and gloves contain
plastic that persists in the
environment for many years.

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MARCH 2021 - ISSUE 14	THE FLOW OF...TRASH FREE WATERS
Trash Free St. Louis Trash Capture Project Kickoff
EPA Region 7 has awarded a project to the
Wichita State University Environmental
Finance Center (EFC), and its sub--awardee,
the Missouri Confluence Waterkeeper
(MCW), to implement the Trash Free St.
Louis initiative. This pilot project was
designed to reduce floating debris entering
the Mississippi River from three St. Louis
urban watersheds by collecting, quantifying,
and characterizing trash trapped by several
in-stream trash capture devices. Volunteers
from the St. Louis area will clean out the
trash traps each month.
The Trash Free Waters program provided
$25,000 to support the project in 2020; this
was supplemented by an additional
$10,000 from EPA Region "7's Land,
Chemical, and Redevelopment Division.
MCW and project partners have installed
trash capture devices in three sites: Deer
Creek, the River Des Peres, and Mackenzie
Creek. Each of these locations provides a
unique opportunity to make an impact on
the flow of plastic into the Mississippi River
and ultimately the Gulf of Mexico. Three
different types of trash capture devices
have been deployed through this project:
the B2B Beaver, Osprey Litter Gitter Boom,
and Trash Trout. Project partners will be
assessing the effectiveness of these
different technologies and using the EPA's
A "Trash Trout" trash trap floats on Deer Creek in Deer Creek Park in Maplewood, Missouri.
draft EPA's Escaped Trash Assessment
Protocol (ETAP) to compile information on
the amount and type of in-stream litter
captured at each location.
This project will provide critical information
to assist future efforts in identifying
upstream sources of litter and developing
and implementing actions that reduce trash
in waterways. The Trash Free St. Louis
project is the first of its kind in Region 7 and
will serve as a template that can be
replicated in other communities and in
launching a more comprehensive program
in the future.
Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) Trash Free Waters Grants
Funding under the FY20 GLRI Trash Free Waters Grant Program
provided $2.1 million to remove trash from local marine and
freshwater environments in order to ensure the Great Lakes
watershed continues to provide healthy wildlife habitat, safe
drinking water, and abundant recreational opportunities.
Harbor District, inc. was the first grant awardee announced last
June. This Milwaukee-based organization received $492,300 to
construct and install a trash collector on the Kinnickinnic River,
south of the confluence of the Kinnickinnic and Milwaukee Rivers
and two miles upstream of Lake Michigan. The project will capture
trash from a 16,000-acre watershed and collect an estimated 75
tons of trash annually. Six additional projects received GLRI
awards: the City of Toledo, Alliance for the Great Lakes, Belle Isle
Conservancy, Great Lakes Community Conservation Corps, Buffalo
Niagara Waterkeeper, and Macatawa Area Coordinating Council.
Community-based projects funded through this program will help
expand volunteer beach and waterway clean ups and install
additional trash capture devices within the Great Lakes watershed.
in January 2021, GLRI announced they would be seeking a second
round of applications to support Trash Free Waters projects. This
new $5 million FY21 grant program, which closed on March 5,
2021, will fund the installation of a number of large-scale aquatic
trash collection devices, vessels, and other technologies to remove
trash from Great Lakes harbors, rivers, and waterfronts. EPA
expects to notify ten finalists this summer.
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THE FLOW OF...TRASH FREE WATERS
MARCH 2021 - ISSUE 14
Maryland Coastal Bays1 Protect Our Sand and Seas
The Trash Free Waters program provided
$25,000 in 2019 to support the Maryland
Coastal Bays Program (MCBP) "Protect Our
Sand and Seas" trash mitigation campaign
in Ocean City, Maryland. The campaign
included a source reduction initiative called
the Ocean City Green Team's Cigarette
Litter Prevention Program, which provided
free cigarette butt receptacles, or "butt
huts," to local businesses which voluntarily
pledged to encourage their use. According
to Ocean City Councilmember and Green
Team chairman Tony Deluca,"... Not only
are cigarettes the most picked up littered
item on our beach in Ocean City but 32
percent of litter at storm drains is tobacco
products. Litter traveling through stormwa-
ter systems ends up in local streams, rivers,
bays and the ocean."
More than 400,000 cigarette butts have
been recycled through the Cigarette Litter
Prevention "butt hut" program. Cigarette
butts are shipped to T'erraCycle to be
repurposed into benches. In July 2020, four
benches made from recycled cigarette
butts were delivered and installed in Ocean
City to heip create public awareness
around proper disposal. Benches feature
the slogan "Put your butts on these butts"
and have been installed on the boardwalk
"Put Your Butts on These Butts" bench in Ocean City; MD.
and in front of a popular local waterfront
dining location.
Keep America Beautiful recently awarded
MCBP and the Ocean City Green Team an
additional $20,000 to help continue the
program as weii as add additional messag-
ing campaigns for residents and visitors. A
Litter Free OC campaign will be launched in
May 2021, with messaging for newsletters,
emails, banners and billboards, social
media, and the Boardwalk trams. The
campaign also includes a new webpage,
www.oceanc.ity.green, which features
volunteer opportunities, a calendar of
upcoming cleanup events, and an anti-litter
pledge. Another aspect of the campaign will
include increased enforcement of littering
laws in the Boardwalk area.
—Sandi Smith,
Maryland Coastal Bays Program,
sandis@mdcoastalbays.ora
Save Our Seas 2.0 Act Signed into Law
Save Our Seas 2.0 was signed into law on December 18th, 2020. The Act includes a
number of initiatives, programs, and studies that collectively address the marine litter issue
domestically and enhance the United States' international engagement on this global
problem. Among the provisions of the Act is the establishment of a new national Trash
Free Waters grant program, authorized at $10 million per year through 2025 (though there
was no appropriation for this program in 2021). Local governments, Indian Tribes, and
nonprofit organizations will be eligible to apply. Grant awards may support source reduc-
tion projects, anti-littering initiatives, local materials management ordinance enforcement,
state/local solid waste policy implementation, trash capture, education and outreach, and
monitoring or modeling reductions in trash flows resulting from the implementation of best
management practices.
The Act also calls for the development of a public EPA strategy for improving post-consumer materials management and water
management. Furthermore, the Agency wiil take the lead on several reports outlined in the Act. Among these are reports on microfiber
pollution, the effects of microplastics on food and drinking water, economic incentives to spur new end-use markets for recyclable
plastic, and reducing the creation of new plastic waste.
3

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MARCH 2021 - ISSUE 14
THE FLOW OF...TRASH FREE WATERS
EPA Gulf of Mexico Division Trash Free Waters Efforts

Region 4 Administrator Mary Walker observes as grant recipient Dog River Clearv/ater
Revival and their contractor, Osprey initiative, count and categorize trash being collected by
trash traps in Mobile, Alabama.
Gulf of Mexico Division (GMD) scientists
estimate that over two billion pounds of
waste end up in the environment annuaiiy in
the five Gulf states alone. This is a problem
that cannot be addressed without the help
of state and local partners who are most
familiar with the conditions of their aquatic
resources and how to influence change in
their areas.
Over the iast four years, GMD has awarded
$9.42 million in trash removal and preven-
tion grants across the five Gulf coast
states. These projects fund activities
related to trash removal, education and
outreach, research, and prevention efforts.
The first eight projects ($1.64 million) have
achieved remarkable results thus far,
including the removal of over 75,000
pounds oftrash from Gulf waters and
watersheds.
In 2020, GMD awarded $7.78 million for 17
new projects in the Gulf states. These
innovative projects will improve water
quality, protect and restore habitat, and
improve community resilience through
trash prevention and removal. In addition,
each project involves education or outreach
and partnerships for the purpose of
influencing business and/or consumer
practices.
In FY21, GMD plans to make further funding
available to support trash free waters work
in the Gulf states, as well as in upstream
inland communities. The new RFA will place
emphasis on projects which work to
prevent trash from being produced and/or
keep trash from entering Guif of Mexico
watersheds.
For more information about GMD efforts to
address water quality, community resil-
ience, habitat restoration and more, please
visit the EPA Gulf of Mexico Division Storv
Map. This tool includes an interactive map
of the 17 GMD 2020 grant awardees.
—Calista Mills,
EPA Region 4 Gulf of Mexico Division,
Mills.Calista@epa.gov
Nurdle Patrol Update
The Nurdle Patrol has performed 7,584 surveys since it began in November 2018; 323
surveys took place in February 2021 alone. Over 2,700 volunteers have surveyed 3,598
different sites since the program began. In February, volunteers removed 9,517 nurdles
from Gulf of Mexico-area beaches, riverbanks, and lake shorelines for a total of
1,527,584 nurdles removed to date by Nurdle Patrollers.
Nurdle Patrol citizen science kits are available for organizations that would like to
incorporate nurdle surveys into their existing programs or start up their own citizen
science projects. Browse all the nurdle data on the map at www.NurdlePatrol.org.
—Jace Tunneii, Mission-Aransas National Estuarine Research Reserve,
jace.tunnell@austin.utexas.edu

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THE FLOW OF...TRASH FREE WATERS
MARCH 2021 - ISSUE 14
Ditch the Disposables Campaign in Alabama's Three Mile Creek Watershed
The Mobile Bay National Estuary Program
(MBNEP) has been using EPA's draft
Escaped Trash Assessment Protocol
(ETAP) to characterize trash collected
through the Three Mile Creek Trash
Abatement Initiative since its start in 2018.
One of the Program's goals was to improve
the quality of local waterways by address-
ing trash problems at sources identified
using ETAP data. Data indicated Styrofoam
and single-use plastics accounted for over
80% of litter trapped by Litter Gitter
in-stream trash-capture devices in the
watershed (see figure). In an effort to
reduce sources, MBNEP developed a
"Ditch the Disposables" campaign.
Partnering with a popular restaurant in a
low-income, primarily minority community
in Prichard, Alabama, a week-long cam-
paign was used to gauge customer
preferences and tolerances related to
biodegradable packaging.
After providing a week's supply of paper
food packaging products for use during the
campaign, MBNEP surveyed 279 restaurant
customers to determine their willingness to
absorb small cost increases for more
Styrofoam Pieces
Hard Fragments 2% *
2% \ I /
Straws and Stirs
2%
\\
Chip Bags
k 6% «
Bags/Film
6%
Food Wrappers
7%


Other Siyrofoam
Fast Food Containers
12%
Water Bottles
14%
Styrofoam Cups
23%
Paper Glass
2% 1%
\
Plastic
52%
TMC ETAP Top 10 Plastic/Styrofoam Items
TMC ETAP Major Category Breakdown
E lAP data item type visualizations for the Three Mile Creek watershed.
eco-friendly packaging. They found 83% of
patrons were willing to incur price increases
ranging from five to 35 cents to switch from
typical Styrofoam to more sustainable
packaging.
The restaurant owner expressed interest in
switching to alternative food packaging if
an affordable option exists. MBNEP hopes
to continue the campaign at another local
restaurant to expand the survey sample size
and inform future source reduction steps.
—Amy Newbold,
EPA Region 4 Gulf of Mexico Division,
Newbold.Amy@epa.gov
Together Celebrate Litter-Free
Joyful, picture-perfect ideas for celebratory events.
Prevent Balloon Litter Website
The Mid-Atlantic Regional Council on the
Ocean's (MARCO) Marine Debris Workgroup
has created a website on preventing
intentional balloon litter. The Work Group
addresses marine debris by collaborating
across multiple levels of government,
looping in the private sector, and listening to
concerned citizens. Researchers have
identified balloon litter as one of the five
deadliest kinds of debris for marine wildlife.
Intentional balloon releases are often
included in weddings, sporting events,
graduations, retail events, memorials, and
funerals. In 2016-2017, volunteers partici-
pating in the International Coastal Cleanup
reported finding more than 14,700 littered
balloons in New York, New Jersey, Dela-
ware, Maryland, and Virginia. Balioon iitter
has a negative impact on marine and
land-based wildlife due to entanglement
and ingestion.
The "Prevent Balloon Litter" website offers
inspirational litter-free ideas to commemo-
rate important iife events. Fun ideas include
blowing bubbles, making paper airplanes or
pinwheels, handing out native seeds to
plant, creating a large banner, dedicating a
bird bath or bench, and more. The website
also offers resources such as educational
activities, video content, and research
publications on the issue. A short animated
video, recently released by the Virginia
Coastal Zone Management Program and
Clean Virginia Waterways of Longwood
University, is included on the website. To
explore more of the campaign and sign the
PreventBalloonLitter.org
Blowing bubbles as an alternative to
releasing balloons.
pledge to never release balloons, visit
https://www.preventballoorilitter.ora/.
5

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MARCH 2021 - ISSUE 14
THE FLOW OF...TRASH FREE WATERS
Trash Free Waters Project Announcements
Curbside Disposal Campaign
In July 2020, the Washington, D.C. Mayor's Office of the Clean City, Department of Public
Works, and Department of Energy and the Environment agreed to collaborate with EPA's
Trash Free Waters program on a Curbside Disposal Education Pilot campaign. Because the
litter released into the environment from improper curbside disposal is typically uninten-
tional, there is a great potential for influencing behavior change to reduce this source of
pollution.
This project involved the design and dissemination of stickers to selected D.C. neighbor-
hoods to inform residents about proper curbside disposal to prevent unintentional trash
leakage. Stickers were distributed in November 2020 by D.C. staff and volunteers with a
flyer encouraging residents to place the sticker on the lid of their trash bin. Sticker mes-
saging featured four recommended actions and the slogan "Cleaner communities and
waterways start here" (see figure). The sticker also directed residents to the D.C. Mayor's
Office of the Clean City website which provides more detail on how to prevent household
trash from becoming litter. Various D.C. government offices also shared the campaign
recommendations via social media to help spread the word to citizens residing outside of
the selected pilot neighborhoods.
D.C. staff conducted 11 weeks of baseline observational litter surveying and an additional
11 weeks of post-implementation surveying along representative routes in each pilot
neighborhood (with some streets and alleyways included in a control group). Focus group
discussions with D.C. residents and neighborhood leaders will be held over the coming
weeks for further citizen insight on perception of litter in the community and effectiveness
of the campaign. TFW anticipates compiling a short report summarizing data findings and
recommendations/lessons learned for other communities that may be interested in
adopting a similar campaign in the future. If the project proves to be successful, D.C. has
expressed interest in expanding the campaign throughout the city.
:losed and do not overfill the can.
trash before putting it in the can.
recyclables; place items loose in your blue can.)
sh in can outside shortly before pickup.
or visit 311.dc.gov for assistance
needing repair or replacement.
ilbsrv* —ifT^- ttssssssssL
¦ CITYL/V* HHIKHrHT	DCMU«L BOWSER MAYOR
In partnership with the U.S. EPA's Trash Free Waters program
www.epa.gov/trash-free-waters
Curbside Disposal Education Pilot bin sticker.
Cleaner communities
and waterways
start here
Keep lid
Bag your
c
(Do not bag
Place tra;
Call 311
with cans
"Trash FrooDC
cl ea n ci ty.dc.gov
zero wa ste .dc.gov
Trash Free Mystic
The Region 1 Trash Free Waters team will
be partnering with representatives from the
Mystic River Watershed Association
(MyRWA), the Mystic River Urban Waters
Federal Partnership, local municipalities,
NGOs, and other watershed groups to
facilitate a remote stakeholder engagement
initiative. This initiative complements a new
five-year effort, launched by MyRWA in
spring 2020, to reduce trash inputs into the
Mystic River Watershed by 50% by increas-
ing research and outreach and mobilizing
large scale interventions on a watershed
level. Introductory scoping conversations
with several local municipalities have
already been convened.
The first of three informational discussion
sessions is scheduled for April and will
feature speakers with insight on non-struc-
tural and structural controls to address
trash, such as trash capture, stormwater
management and policy. The second
session will provide participants with
context and case study examples of
interventions like source reduction cam-
paigns and street sweeping. After learning
from the perspectives provided in the first
two meetings, stakeholders will use the
final session to brainstorm potential
barriers and solutions to trash pollution.
Ultimately, project partners will develop two
to three priority trash mitigation projects or
shared strategies to tackle the issue in the
Mystic River watershed.
Recommended Reading
PEW Charitable Trusts Report on Breaking
the Plastic Wave
In July 2020, the Pew Charitable Trusts
released a landmark report, "Breaking the
Plastic Wave: A Comprehensive Assess-
ment of Pathways Towards Stopping Ocean
Plastic Pollution." This global analysis uses
first-of-its kind modeling to show that
existing solutions and technologies can cut
annual flows of plastic into the ocean by
about 80% in the next 20 years. No single
solution can achieve this goal; rather, an
urgent, immediate global strategy must be
pursued by governments and industry
leaders, upstream and downstream,
requiring innovation and different imple-
mentation priorities in different geogra-
phies, to avoid catastrophic consequences
for the world's oceans. The report models
six scenarios for tackling ocean pollution,
from business-as-usual to a system change
scenario. Read the report here.
"Waste in Our Waters" Toolkit
In 2020, the River Network released "Waste
in our Waters: A Community Toolkit for
Aquatic Litter Removal." The toolkit outlines
what to consider when exploring how to
strategically address litter in your communi-
ty. It also provides an in-depth comparison
of various in-stream litter capture devices;
6

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THE FLOW OF...TRASH FREE WATERS
MARCH 2021 - ISSUE 14
this can be used to help stakeholders
determine which device will work best in
their community and waterway given their
unique site characteristics, potential trash
loads, budget requirements, and mainte-
nance abilities. The EPA's forthcoming
Escaped Trash Assessment Protocol
i :TAP) is also referenced in the document.
This toolkit is an essential resource for both
community advocates and experts alike.
New Research on U.S. Contributions to the
Marine Litter Problem
A recent study published in Science
provides an updated estimate on U.S.
plastic waste generation and loadings to
coastal ecosystems. Authors found that in
2016, the U.S. generated the largest
amount of piastic waste of any country in
the world, totaling 42 million metric tons.
According to their research, the amount of
plastic waste generated in the U.S. estimat-
ed to enter the coastal environment in 2016
was up to five times larger than that
estimated in a 2010 study, "rendering the
United States' contribution among the
highest in the world."
Recent EPA Publications on Preventing
and Reducing Marine Litter
EPA released the U.S. Federal Strategy for
Addressing the Global Issue of Marine
Utter last fall in collaboration with NOAA
and other federal partners. The strategy
highlights the federal government's four
pillars for tacking the issue of marine litter:
(1) building capacity, (2) incentivizing the
global recycling market, (3) promoting
research and development, (4) promoting
marine litter removal.
EPA also published a Solid Waste Manage-
ment Guide for Developing Countries to
share best practices with locai decision
makers in developing countries to improve
their solid waste collection infrastructure.
TFW Educational Article Series
The Trash Free Waters program, in collabo-
ration with the National Environmental
Education Foundation, launched an article
series featuring useful trash prevention
information. The first three articles are
published on the TFW website.
The first article, "Trash Free Waters On Anv
Timeline." is an introductory resource that
highlights the problems associated with
escaped trash and steps the average citizen
can take to help address the problem.
The second article in the series provides an
overview of the problem of microfibers
-	tiny plastic fragments shed from clothes
-	and what's being done to address the
problem, including what you can do (see
infographic). Read the full article on our
website here.
The third article describes some of the
innovative products and models that are
being developed to reduce waste from
plastic packaging. The article examines
bio-based plastic materials, non-plastic
packaging alternatives, and new reuse
models. Read it here.
TFW Webinar Series
Check out the Trash Free Waters Webinar
Library for access to any webinars you may
have missed over the past few months. In
November, we hosted a webinar on
"Experiences and Lessons Learned from
Trash Capture Projects;" three expert speak-
ers shared their knowledge and insight on
trash capture planning, siting, installation,
and maintenance. On March 11 we hosted
the fifth webinar in the TFW series, "Reuse
Models as Part of the Solution to the Plastic
Pollution Crisis." This webinar explores
three very different types of reuse and refill
models, explaining how they work and the
stories behind them.
The Rapids
The TFW team distributed the inaugural issue
of the Trash Free Waters Rapids in June 2020.
This monthly information blast is published on
the first Monday of each month and provides
helpful information on funding opportunities,
upcoming webinars, a summary of recent
microplastics research, and more. This
information will therefore no longer be
included in the Flow newsletter. If you aren't
currently receiving the Rapids and would like
to, please sign up here.
WANT TO REDUCE
MICROFIBERS?
Simple tips to help reduce
microfiber pollution:
Wash clothing less often.
This is perhaps the simplest
and most effective method
for reducing microfiber
pollution.
Only wash full loads of laundry.
This results in loss friction
between clothes and reduces
shedding of synthetic fibers.

Use microfibor- catching devices
when you do tho laundry.
Several technologies are
available for purchase, including
special wash bags and laundry
balls designed to trap
microfibers.
Wash laundry with cold water
for a shorter period of time.
Studies have found that
switching to a col dor and shortar
cycle can dramatically reduce
microfiber shedding.
\^J
*? <='
Install an oxtornal microfibor
filtor on your washing machino
and dispose of captured
microfibers in the trash.
There are several commercially
available external lint filters to
choose from
Use a front-loading washer,
if possible.
Top-load washing
machines tend to produce
more microfibers than front-
loading machines.
o
rvNEEFiHr
Infographic with tips on reducing microfiber
pollution from the TFW article "What You
Should Know About Microfiber Pollution."
7

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